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1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to the field of computer networking, specifically to the field of network management systems for displaying information regarding network devices and objects of an enterprise-wide computer network.
2. Description of the Related Art
Computer networks are growing at a rapid pace. Businesses are continually adding new workgroups to their existing computer networks. Often these computer networks are spread across organizational and geographical boundaries forming enterprise-wide networks, or simply, enterprise networks. FIG. 1 illustrates enterprise network 100 that may include Ethernet, token ring, and fiber distributed data interface (FDDI) local area networks (LANs) that consist of high-speed backbones, geographically dispersed networks, network devices such as switches (102), routers 104(a) and 104(b), bridges 106(a) and 106(b), hubs 108(a) through 108(e), servers and end-user workstations, and a variety of cabling media.
As computer networks expand and become more complex, forming enterprise networks, network management systems are employed to maximize the control, efficiency and performance of the enterprise network. Network management systems allow a network manager using a management station 110 to automate the management of diverse, multivendor enterprise networks. Network management systems such as Optivity(trademark), a suite of graphical network management applications from Bay Networks, Incorporated, the assignee of the present invention, can manage activity on an enterprise network from a single management station. Optivity operates on a UNIX-based network management station and can be used with SunSoft SunNet Manager from Sun Microsystems, Incorporated, HP OpenView Network Node Manager (NMM) from Hewlett-Packard, Incorporated, and IBM AIX System View NetView/6000 from International Business Machines (IBM), Incorporated. Optivity displays information in the OSF/MOTIF(trademark) or SunOS OPEN LOOK graphical user interfaces (MOTIF is a trademark of the Open Software Foundation). Optivity, for example, allows the network manager to monitor and manage an entire enterprise network as one system, from the enterprise level down to the network device level.
Network management systems typically provide a method for locating and identifying, i.e., discovering, network devices and objects (e.g., network segments) and producing a network topology map therefrom. Once the topology map is created, the map may be used to 1) provide a blueprint of the network, 2) obtain an inventory of network devices in the network, 3) locate a network device or object and obtain information about its physical location and status, 4) locate a network device in order to configure it, and 5) launch a network management application to perform configuration, performance, fault, and security management tasks on a selected network device or object.
However, given the size of today""s enterprise networks, network maps can be so complicated that it is difficult to determine the physical and geographical relationships of the network devices and objects indicated by the map. FIG. 2 depicts a topology map 200 graphically displaying an enterprise network including, for example, routers, IP subnets and LAN segments, according to Internet View, an Optivity topology viewing tool. Indeed, the network depicted in topology map 200 is visible in the window only by scrolling the window up or down, so that at any one time, the entire enterprise network cannot be viewed. What is needed is a method for presenting information regarding the physical and geographical relationships of network devices in such a way that, even for complex networks, the network manager can view the health status of the network at a glance.
An example of a tool that provides information regarding the physical and geographical relationships of network devices is the Enterprise Command Center module, an Optivity tool used to manage enterprise networks. With reference to FIG. 1, the Enterprise Command Center logically divides the network devices and objects of an enterprise network into a plurality of sites, for example, sites 101 (a), 101(b) and 101(c). As illustrated in FIG. 3, the network manager, using the Enterprise Command Center graphical user interface (GUI), obtains better visibility of the network from the site level down to the device level within a single window 300. By selecting a site at site pane 310, the network manager is then able to select a particular type of device or object folder, e.g., a hub folder, from resources pane 320. Selecting a folder from resources pane 320 displays all network devices of the type indicated by that folder, e.g., of the type hub, at the contents pane 330. This visibility into the network allows the network manager to quickly navigate to a particular network device or object according to device type to initiate configuration, performance, fault, and security management tasks. A cursor control device such as a mouse may be used to click and drag a network device icon from contents pane 330 and drop the icon on one of a number of tool icons available in the tools bar 340 to initiate, or launch, one of the aforesaid tasks represented by the tool icon.
Another difficulty that arises given a topology map of a large, complex enterprise network is the ability to quickly navigate to a particular network device or object to initiate configuration, performance, fault, and security management tasks. Commonly, tools for performing configuration, performance, fault, and security management tasks or simply obtaining further network device information are available to the network manager via the network management system. One well-known example of a tool that performs such functions is the RouterMan(trademark) network management tool. RouterMan, operates either as a standalone application or together with the Optivity package of network management applications available from Bay Networks, Incorporated. Generally, Expanded View, a feature of RouterMan, allows the network manager to launch additional sessions that provide further options for monitoring individual routers. Each instance of a RouterMasn Expanded View session creates a window on the network management station display device. Importantly, this window allows the network manager to monitor and perform tasks for only one router. U.S. patent application Ser. No. 08/110,412, filed Aug. 20, 1993, entitled, xe2x80x9cMethod and Apparatus for Logically Viewing a Router or Similar Device in a Data Networkxe2x80x9d, which application is assigned to the assignee of the present invention and is incorporated herein by reference, further describes certain aspects of monitoring, viewing and altering information regarding individual network devices.
RouterMan Expanded View uses multiple sessions operating concurrently, each creating a separate window to provide information for a like number of network devices. What is needed is a scalable tool that is able to provide health status information regarding multiple network devices from a single session. Moreover, heretofore such tools were device-centric, i.e., they provided health status information for multiple network devices, but only for the same type of devices, e.g., routers. For example, with reference to FIG. 4, System Monitor, a RouterMan tool, may be used to monitor the health status of an entire network or subset of routers from a single window 400 on the network management station display device.
As FIG. 4 shows, the RouterMan System Monitor window 400 includes four health status panes: 1) critical status pane 410, 2) warning status pane 420, 3) acknowledge status pane 430, and 4) operational status pane 440. The location of a router icon in one of the health status panes indicates the overall health of the router, as a function of the health of the protocols and interfaces operating in the router, as defined by default or configured fault thresholds assigned thereto.
Tools bar 450 is used to perform an action on a selected router. To perform one of the actions in tools bar 450, the network manager selects a router icon (e.g., router icon 411) by clicking on router icon 411 with a cursor control device such as a mouse, and dragging router icon 411 on to a tool icon within tools bar 450. As the network manager drops, i.e., releases, the router icon on to a tool icon within the tools bar 450, the action takes place or a dialog box is displayed to enable the manager to complete the action. For example, dragging router icon 411 from critical status pane 410 to expand tool icon 451 in tools bar 450 launches a RouterMan Expanded View monitoring session for the particular router represented by router icon 411.
However, what is needed is a tool that embraces a system model in which all network devices can be simultaneously monitored from a single session at the network management station instead of the device-centric model as, for example, illustrated in FIG. 4.
Furthermore, network devices should be grouped according to a network manager defined criteria such as, for example, status or device type.
Additionally, a tool should provide an intuitive interface by which other operations can be invoked for a given network device or object so that more detailed information may be obtained in order to resolve a fault or problem with the given device or object.
A method and apparatus for concurrently displaying from a single window on a network management station the health status of all network devices and objects of a computer network is disclosed. The network devices may be categorized according to state or device type, as determined by the network manager. The method and apparatus provides a network manager with the ability to quickly determine the current state of network devices and objects within an enterprise network and invoke further actions such as configuration, performance, fault, and security management tasks using intuitive graphical user interface features.
It is a further object of the present invention to allow the network manager to drag and drop icons from one network management system application window to another network management system application window to obtain fault information about network devices and objects, thus allowing multiple network management system applications to run concurrently on the same network management station.
Another object of the present invention is to allow the network manager to add new network devices and objects by dragging site, folder or device icons from one network management system application window to a second network management system application window for displaying the health status of the new devices. The dragged-in devices are added to the appropriate status panes within the second window according to the method of the present invention.